Possessive adjectives: mi, tu, su, nuestro, vuestro
Whose is it? mi casa, nuestros hijos, vuestra madre
Part of the free A1 Spanish course. Press the speaker next to an example to hear it.
The full set
You met mi, tu, su in mi, tu, su: my, your, his/her/your. A possessive adjective goes in front of a noun to say whose it is (my, your, our). Here is the full set:
| Owner | one thing | several things |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mi | mis |
| tú | tu | tus |
| él, ella, usted | su | sus |
| nosotros, nosotras | nuestro, nuestra | nuestros, nuestras |
| vosotros, vosotras | vuestro, vuestra | vuestros, vuestras |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | su | sus |
They agree with the thing, not the owner
The ending depends on what is owned, not on who owns it. Mi, tu, su only add -s for plural; nuestro and vuestro also change for gender:
- Nuestra casa tiene un jardín pequeño.Our house has a small garden.
- Nuestros vecinos son muy simpáticos.Our neighbours are very nice.
- Mis hermanos viven en Málaga.My brothers live in Málaga.
- ¿Dónde están tus gafas?Where are your glasses?
- ¿Es vuestro perro?Is that your dog?
- Vuestras habitaciones están arriba.Your rooms are upstairs.
Nuestra casa is “our house” even if the owners are all men: casa is feminine.
Su: his, her, its, your, their
Su has many meanings: his, her, its, your (usted), their, your (ustedes). Context usually makes it clear:
- Ana y Luis venden su piso.Ana and Luis are selling their flat.
If it's not clear, use de + person: el coche de ella (her car), la casa de ustedes (your house).
No 's in Spanish
For “Ana's house”, say la casa de Ana:
- La casa de Ana es muy grande.Ana's house is very big.
Tu or tú?
tu (your) has no accent; tú (you) has one: Tú tienes tu billete (You have your ticket).
Body and clothes
With reflexive verbs (Reflexive verbs for the daily routine (levantarse)) Spanish uses el, la, los, las for parts of the body and for the clothes you put on, not a possessive: Me lavo las manos (I wash my hands), Me pongo el abrigo (I put my coat on).
Stand-alone forms like mío and tuyo (mine, yours) come in Possessive pronouns: el mío, la tuya, los suyos.
Common mistakes
Nuestra hijos→ Nuestros hijos.Sus casafor “their house” → Su casa. One house, so su, even with several owners.El mi libro→ Mi libro. No article before a possessive.María's coche→ El coche de María.Me lavo mis dientes→ Me lavo los dientes.
Latin America
Vuestro is used only in Spain. In Latin America “your” for a group is su, sus (or de ustedes): ¿Es su perro? or ¿Es el perro de ustedes?
Practice
- _____ hijos estudian en Granada.Options: Nuestros · Nuestras · Nuestro
Show the answer
Nuestros — Hijos is masculine plural.
- Juan y Pedro, ¿dónde está _____ madre?Options: vuestra · vuestro · vuestras
Show the answer
vuestra — Madre is feminine singular: vuestra, whoever the owners are.
- Mis amigos y yo vamos a _____ bar favorito.
Show the answer
nuestro
- Mis abuelos venden _____ casa.
Show the answer
su — One house, so su (not sus), even with two owners. La casa is also natural when it's obvious whose house it is.